Sydney R. Marovitz Golf Course

traps unkept course rough but playing winter rules it was very playable....bums tent in a tree on a hole was a first...lol

Pros:

Located in the city

Easy parking

Beautiful location on lakefront

Inexpensive

Cons:

Staff is pretty gruff, especially the rangers

Could be maintained better - grass at the edge of the fairway is often too tall to see your ball until you are on top of it

Always crazy crowded

Kind of boring course - pretty flat and few hazards

A little TLC on the course maintenance, a bit more breathing room between golfers and a nicer staff this place could be charging notably more and golfers could be having a much more pleasant experience. Even though the course really isn't remarkable, I would pay more to come here because of the convenience and scenery if it wasn't such a pain in the behind to actually play here.

I play here all summer. Great for getting out after work since the only range nearby has mats. The course is usually in great shape given its location and greens fees - greens are slow, sand traps can be muddy or hard.

My only real complaint (which is not their fault):

Pace: this is completely hit or miss because of the location. You get some groups who have never played in their life, extremely drunk groups, and everything in between. The rangers really do their best, but a round can last anywhere between 1:30 to 3hrs. Understanding that will make the experience much better (usually moves at 2hrs +/- 15mins). Get there before 9am on the weekends, or before 5pm on the weekdays, and you will be in great shape.

I live downtown and this course is easy to get to by cab. Holes are nice and long. Not a par 3 course. It delivers on its promises. Very compact; pretty narrow. Not terribly challenging but a great place to get out and hit some balls! No practice green or driving range.

Even though I live 15 minutes from the course, I had been putting off playing it for fear that it would be too short and not challenging enough for my above average game. I was pleasantly surprised. The fairways were a little wide, but the longer than average hole length made up for it. The greens played very well for it being November. I will use for the early season and later fall. I recommend it.

Most of the bunkers are pulverized dirt on a clay base. They started to fix the problem but have stopped. Please finish the project.

Course is pretty average and short. Rate of play was considerably slower than I expected. Sometimes they have great deals but I probably will not pay full price to play this course again.

Staff very a helpful .easy online reservations, and easy to get started on the course.

I've lived in Chicago for 28 years and I have to play Marovitz at least once or twice a year because I drive by it to and from work everyday. Truthfully, the course is the perfect amount of fun, fair, and challenging. The atmosphere of being between the Lake and Lake shore drive is sweet. But; for as long as I can remember the two huge complaints have been, overpriced and horrible pace of play! Idea: charge what you want to charge for green fees, but spread your time slots out from 8min to 12-15min and maybe the course won't be a giant log jam! Maybe make the experience more enjoyable.

For a 9 hole course, this hands down may be the front runner. Long par 4's and well maintained greens makes this course fun and challenging. Plus, being on the shore of Lake Michigan, I had an awesome view of the air and water show. But if your in a hurry do not bother. To enjoy yourself in the course you must have patience.

We've played this course multiple times and I almost regret it every time. The course is $27 to walk and $40 to ride for 9 holes which is obscene for what it is. It is always busy but they over charge for riding customers. The marshall staff are typically crabby and pushy - like you're playing Augusta or something. Lighten up, and treat people like customers, not like kids driving through your lawn.

The course is in fair shape, greens were pretty good but fairways and tee boxes were spotty. I will only play here if I get a deal, I'm not going to overpay for 9 holes just to be pushed along like a second rate citizen.

We will likely play here again sometime and as I do each time, I hope to have a better experience.

Do not play hee unless you lik 3 hour 9 hole rounds.

Checked in at 6:55 for a 7:08 tee time for a twosome. At 7:15 we teed off and was put with 2 singles (seniors) that were walking the course. The pace of play was awful. We were averaging 18 minutes a hole (5.4 hours for 18) and hitting every 4-5 minutes. There is no way to keep any consistency in your game at all.

Unfortunately with the addition of 2 people, late tee time start, and pace of play I had to pay the full fare and only play 6 holes.

I will have to keep making the trek out to the burbs to play quality golf.

Took us 3.5 hours to play 9 holes. We started 45 minutes after our tee time. The pace of play was horrible. There is no one monitoring the course. We counted a ten some (not even sure that's a thing) playing in front of us that was holding up the entire course. Very frustrating. Not worth $40 we paid. I would not recommend playing this course to anyone who wants to play 9 in less than 3 hours. The course itself is decent. Lack of staff (monitoring course, ensuring timely starts and loading people into carts) really kill the pace of play and overall experience. I've played here several times and the pace is always a little slow and starts are always late, but my experience yesterday was by far the worst.

Great 9 hole track with lake and skyline as backdrop. Condition of course continues to improve every year but bunkers still need a lot of work ( many dirt and not sand). If you play go early in the day (before 8am) or you will be in for a 4 hour round.

Went on an abnormally warm day at the end of October, was extremely and pleasantly surprised to see the course in excellent condition, hats off to the landscaping crew. Greens and fairways are large, hazards are present but easily avoidable, fairly low difficulty course. At $27/person, reasonably priced. Course played slow due to unseasonably pleasant weather and heavy crowds, took over three hours to play 9. However, if you are not in a rush, it is an excellent course to play and I will most certainly be back.

This is one of my sentimental favorites, went on Friday morning and pace of play was good. If you go on a Friday afternoon, pace of play can be slow. Some construction obscures the lake views right now, but overall a lovely round.

Course is in best condition of Chicago Park District courses. Some of the sand traps need sand though. Overall a fairly nice layout....but, the speed of play on weekends is abysmal. 3+ hours to play 9 holes is unacceptable. Even though the groups in front of us had carts we waited on every single tee and often in the fairways as well.

I get that it's prime real estate, but for a rather meagerly maintained city course, it's not worth upwards of $40 to play 9 holes.

You can get it down to about $17 with a Advantage card, and if you want to carry your own bag, but even then....

Sometimes it takes 4 hours to finish a round. 9 Holes!

It's great that its close for those of us who live in the city.... that's all it has going for it.

This course is beautiful. Right next to the water, in great condition and well maintained. Pace of play however is a joke at this place. I've played here over 30 times and have completed 9 holes in 2 hours once. It is very common to get stuck behind 5 and 6-somes. Many PGA professionals think it's acceptable to give 9 hole lessons to novices here, as happened to me today, and the 'ranger' did nothing about the 8 group pile up they caused. We spoke to the ranger 5 separate times about coming out and making them skip a hole, he said he would but never did. Don't expect any rule enforcement. Lovely course, lovely location, pace is always 3 holes per hour. I would recommend going on days when rain is forecasted or it is 50 degrees.